national need to leverage this wave of good news to start targeting a reduction in the size of the government spend – and use the savings to aggressively pay down government debt and start saving for the next global shock, as there is bound to be one in the next 7-10 years…

It’s the bigger picture we need to see – like how has their overall performance been – its all very well quoting election year figures, but as we all know – its the complete term that matters – I think most Kiwis would prefer three years of average, compared to two years of shyte and one of inflated statistics.

peterwn

Jack5

A leading bank elaborating on today’s figures, included this statement:

…we project that the annual trade surplus will expand further so that the annual current account deficit will decline further to around 2.5% of GDP in Q2 2014. From later this year we would expect to see the deficit expand gradually as dairy prices recede somewhat from their current exceptionally high levels and as import volumes continue to expand.

So we still aren’t likely to end for years of these deficits, which give a broader picture of NZ’s commerce with the rest of the world.

mandk

@ Judith,

In the past five years (i.e. most of the time Nats have been in power) the value of exports has gone from $43.4bn to $50.1 bn.
During the same period the value of imports has gone from $48.0bn to $49.3 bn.
The trade balance has gone from -$4.7 bn. to +$0.8 bn.

igm

igm

Bet MSM don’t mention these facts, Cunliffe’s lying, nor Parker’s inability to manage our nation’s economy. These deadbeat leeches should be exposed for the frauds they are . . . but they won’t be by the left-wing crap in MSM, taking directives from Komrad Little.

Whilst I accept that many are blind enough to take one years stats, I prefer to make my judgement from the total performance.
In this case they are doing well, and keeping up with the rest of the world. Well done!

DRF

interest.co.nz always comment on the trade statistics and at the bottom of the post is a graph of the time series back to 2002. The trade balance was clearly declining all the way through from 2002 to a low point of 30 Sep 08. Obviously as well as the change of government this is also the time the China FTA started to kick in but apart from that agreement, trade performance was close to catastrophic through the last Labour government.